The University of Alabama at Birmingham
AMPLIFY and DUET provide sound information and support to make changes in diet and physical activity that are key in keeping cancer survivors and their loved ones healthy. is now recruiting cancer survivors in Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee for two new, web-based healthy lifestyle trials.
The AiM Plan and act on LIFestYles, or AMPLIFY, sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, aims to test the impact of diet and exercise interventions on change in health behaviors, physical performance, body weight, muscle mass, overall health and quality of life.
The Daughters, dUdes, mothErs and others Together, or DUET, research clinical trial is funded by the American Institute of Cancer Research and is similar to the AMPLIFY clinical research trial. The primary difference between the two is that the DUET research clinical trial will intervene upon the lifestyle behaviors of cancer survivors and their chosen partners. Fifty-six cancer survivors will enroll in this six-month diet and exercise weight-management program with a partner of their choosing, for example, a friend, neighbor, spouse or other relative.
Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, Ph.D., senior scientist with the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB, has spent the majority of her career investigating the roles of lifestyle interventions in cancer survivors and says healthy eating and exercise are important for people in this group.
“Individuals who have had a diagnosis of cancer are at much higher risk for developing another cancer, as well as heart disease and diabetes,” she said. “AMPLIFY and DUET provide sound information and support to make changes in diet and physical activity that are key in keeping cancer survivors and their loved ones healthy.”
Her team is eager to take cancer survivorship research to the next level, by extending the reach of evidence-based interventions and programs designed to promote the health and well-being of cancer survivors, Demark-Wahnefried says.
“Research interventions like AMPLIFY and DUET offer potential cost-effective, viable solutions for community cancer programs to help their patients achieve optimal health outcomes,” she said. “These research programs — at no cost to community cancer programs —provide a much-needed resource for survivors and address patient goals to live a full and healthy life.”
To learn more about these trials, or to find out if you are eligible, please email amplify@uabmc.edu or duet@uabmc.edu.
Demark-Wahnefried is also professor and Webb Endowed Chair of Nutrition Sciences at UAB.